Rajon Rondo’s words worth it

It was interesting to follow reactions when Celtics [team stats] guard Rajon Rondo [stats] called out his team on these pages earlier this week.

Fans speculated on the objects of his ire. The coach thought people were overreacting, without actually reading the piece, and that Rondo was taken out of context. Kevin Garnett stepped in front of a postgame question to Rondo on Wednesday and said everything would be staying in house from now on. A certain percentage of readers probably figured Rondo had been drawn into saying something he wished he hadn’t.

But we’re not buying any of that. After seeing the process from its beginning to now, the following beliefs are firmly held:

1. Rajon Rondo is a very smart man (not exactly breaking news).

2. He knew exactly what he was saying.

3. His comments were true and much needed.

4. It worked, at least for one night.

5. Rondo did Doc Rivers a favor.

6. It will be a measure of the Celtics if they follow through. Or if they do not.

Rondo was still very comfortable with everything last night. He is not just a confident man on the court. And he will absolutely be the fulcrum as this club seeks to transition from this core to the next in the nearer-than-you-think future.

So let us examine the points above in order.

1. Rondo can be a little cocky and headstrong, but he is a pensive sort who doesn’t exactly fly by the seat of his baggy shorts. In “Bull Durham,” Annie may have been correct in general terms when she said, “The world is made for people who aren’t cursed with self-awareness.” But Rondo is an exception. Even his on-court ad-libs seem well considered.

2. Rondo and Kendrick Perkins [stats] were both answering different questions in separate interviews when they turned down a different road and questioned the effect individual agendas were having on the team. When the conversation was paused, and it was noted to Rondo just what he was saying, he continued in the same vein.

3. We can’t speak with direct knowledge of what happened in the dressing room when the media is not present, but too many players hinted about issues over the past few weeks.

4. On Wednesday vs. Miami, the Celtics shared the ball better than they had in more than a month.

5. The coach complained that the team has too often abandoned its offensive plays and defensive schemes, but both he and the players kept saying publicly that, “Hey, it’s early and there will be plenty of time to stop this junk and start playing the kind of basketball that is needed to win playoff games.” It was all getting a bit stale.

The way the Celts played Wednesday was reminiscent of a scene from every young man’s past. It was like two kids fighting in the elementary school hallway until the principal appears. The lads bolt to attention, claim in unison that nothing was going on and walk away together, forgetting what the brawl was all about.

“No, man,” said the Celtics [team stats] on Wednesday. “We don’t have any agendas.”

6. It was clear last night in the first half against the Nets, as it has been all year, that if the Celtics aren’t willing to do the smaller things (setting hard picks, boxing out on the glass, etc.) their larger goals will elude them.

Rondo may need to sing an encore . . . and a backing chorus would be nice.